I really enjoyed the writing style in this novel--the images in particular were exquisite! But I found the characterization unbelievable. Kate was too good to be real, too sacrificial and gullible. And on the other hand, Zoe was too horrible, even with all her emotional baggage. Sophie and Tom were the characters that I found convincing, and they were very much so. ( )

Enjoyed this one quite a bit, particularly after the half- way mark when it became full of suspense and captured what the adrenaline of the racing experience must be like. It provided an insight into the world of cycling and childhood leukaemia through mostly believable characters. ( )

Zoe and Kate have been fierce competitors for most of their lives. They're also fast friends. Zoe already won an Olympic medal, while Kate was taking a break from competition to care for her infant daughter. Now, they have to compete against each other for one slot on the 2012 Olympic team. Drama ensues.

My main problem with this book is amount of drama that Kate and Zoe bring to each others' lives. Yes, their situation is complicated--it would be difficult to be such close friends while pursing a dream only one can achieve. But the solution is to compete, and may the best racer win. It's not about who is more deserving, who already had their turn, or who has sacrificed the most.

But, without the tension, there'd be no book, so obviously that wouldn't work here. I guess the bottom line is I liked the book enough to keep reading, but in the end hated that I'd spent so much time with insufferable, narcissistic whiners. ( )

Go for Gold if you want to enter into some Olympic spirit via the ups and downs of a tight-knit group of characters. However, if you find yourself unmoved by the kind of technical details contained in, "he prodded questioningly at the minimalist opening mechanism of the apartment’s high-gloss olive-lacquered sliding front door", then this may not be your idea of a winner.

Like most novels about sport, Chris Cleave's Gold isn't really about sport. Sport as an activity, of course, is unbeatably thrilling if you're a participant or a fan. The problem is, if you're neither of those things, it can be the most astonishing bore.

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Cyclists Zoe and Kate are friends and athletic rivals for Olympic gold, while Kate and her husband Jack, also a world-class cyclist, must contend with the recurrence of their young daughter's leukemia.